Armoring part for a vehicle

ABSTRACT

An armoring part for a vehicle includes a steel plate made of at least partially hot formed and press hardened armor steel and having a hardness of 380 to 760 Vickers (HV). Applied on at least one side of the steel plate is a coat which is made of a metal material which is softer than a metal material of the armor steel. The coat is a thermally applied layer and has a hardness of 10 to 230 Vickers (HV).

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the priority of German Patent Application, Ser. No. 10 2015 116 879.0, filed Oct. 5, 2015, pursuant to 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d), the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety as if fully set forth herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an armoring part for a vehicle.

The following discussion of related art is provided to assist the reader in understanding the advantages of the invention, and is not to be construed as an admission that this related art is prior art to this invention.

Vehicles with special protection are used to protect persons and valuables from bullets released from handguns and long guns (ballistic protection). Such vehicles are conceived to prevent penetration of bullets coming from all directions. For this purpose, armoring parts are installed in the vehicles, e.g. in side panels including body sills with A-, B-, C-, (D-) pillars and doors, front and rear parts, roof area, and floor assembly.

In order to provide adequate strength of the armoring parts against projectiles, armor steels of high toughness and hardness as well as appropriate geometric dimensioning, in particular adequate thickness of the structural parts, have been used. The armoring parts exhibit therefore a fairly great thickness, accompanied by high weight.

It would therefore be desirable and advantageous to provide an improved armoring part for a vehicle to obviate prior art shortcomings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the present invention, an armoring part for a vehicle includes a steel plate made of at least partially hot formed and press hardened armor steel and having a hardness of 380 to 760 Vickers (HV), and a coat applied on at least one side of the steel plate and made of a metal material which is softer than a metal material of the armor steel, the coat being a thermally applied layer and having a hardness of 10 to 230 Vickers (HV).

An armoring part for a vehicle in accordance with the present invention is of reduced thickness and lighter weight, compared to a conventional armoring part for a vehicle, while still maintaining superior ballistic properties. The present invention resolves prior art problems by combining a steel plate of armor steel with high hardness and strength with a coat of softer metal material compared to the metal material of the armor steel. Tests have shown that superior ballistic properties could be realized with both hard-core projectiles and soft-core projectiles bullets.

Advantageously, the coat is applied upon the steel plate on the outer side of the armoring part.

Practical tests have shown that an armoring part for a vehicle in accordance with the present invention has at least the same resistance and bombardment classifications as a conventional armoring of same type without coat, while the wall thickness of the steel plate of armor steel can be reduced between 10% and 35%, typically by 20% in an armoring part according to the present invention. Accompanying the reduction in wall thickness is a weight saving. This has a positive effect on special protective vehicles in terms of economy and ecology.

According to another advantageous feature of the present invention, the coat can be joined to the steel plate by a form fit and/or force fit.

The coat is a thermally applied layer that can be sprayed onto the steel plate. Such a thermally applied layer can be produced by coating with a material that is in a solid, grainy, or powdery state. Coating involves thermal spray techniques, e.g. flame spraying, arc spraying, or plasma spraying processes.

According to another advantageous feature of the present invention, the coat can be made of aluminum or an aluminum alloy. An example of an aluminum alloy is Al99.5. As an alternative, the coat can be made of zinc or a zinc alloy.

According to another advantageous feature of the present invention, the steel plate can have a thickness of 5.0 mm to 10.0 mm, in particular a thickness of 7.0 mm to 9.5 mm. Currently preferred is a thickness of the steel plate of 7.3 mm to 8.4 mm.

According to another advantageous feature of the present invention, the coat can have a thickness of 0.01 mm to 0.4 mm, in particular a thickness of 0.025 mm to 0.25 mm. Currently preferred is a thickness of the coat of 0.05 mm to 0.2 mm.

The armoring part for a vehicle has a three-dimensional shape. Shape and geometry can be best suited to the use of the armoring part in a vehicle.

Advantageously, the steel plate of an armoring part for a vehicle in accordance with the present invention is at least partially hot formed and press hardened. Currently preferred is a complete hot forming and press hardening of the steel plate. As a result, the used armor steel may undergo heat treatment with subsequent quench hardening.

According to another advantageous feature of the present invention, the armoring part for a vehicle may be provided with a cathodic coat of dipping varnish. The application of the cathodic coat of dipping varnish is advantageously realized after the vehicle has been manufactured and/or after manufacturing the vehicle with further components, such as armor components.

According to another advantageous feature of the present invention, the armor steel can be made of a steel alloy which contains at least the following alloying components, expressed in weight-%:

Carbon (C) 0.2-0.5 Manganese (Mn) 0.3-2.5 Nickel (Ni) 0.5-3.0

According to another advantageous feature of the present invention, the steel allow may contain the further alloy components, expressed in weight-%:

Silicon (Si)  0.1-0.3  Phosphor (P) <0.05 Sulphur (S) <0.02 Aluminum (Al) <0.08 Copper (Cu) <0.12 Molybdenum (Mo)  0.1-1.0  Boron (B) 0.001-0.01 Nitrogen (N) <0.05 Chromium (Cr)  0.1-1.0  Titanium (Ti) <0.1 Cobalt (Co) <2.0 Niobium (Nb) <0.08.

An armoring part for a vehicle which includes an armor steel made from the afore-described steel alloy in combination with a coat in accordance with the present invention exhibits superior properties in terms of resistance to penetration, even when subjected to multiple attacks with projectiles, or in terms of bullet resistance. Armor steel can now be used with lesser wall thickness because of the combination with the coat, while still being in compliance with demanded resistance and bombardment classifications.

The steel plate can have a hardness of 380 to 760 Vickers (HV). In particular the steel plate can have a hardness in a range from 475 to 665 Vickers (HV). Currently preferred is a hardness of the steel plate of 520 to 620.

Tests have shown that the bombardment resistance and resistance to multiple attacks with projectiles is superior, when the coat has a hardness of 10 to 230 Vickers (HV), in particular in a range of 15 to 115 Vickers (HV). Currently preferred is a hardness of the coat of 20 to 100 Vickers (HV).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

NONE

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

NONE

While the invention has been described in connection with currently preferred embodiments described in detail, it is not intended to be limited to the details described since various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing in any way from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain the principles of the invention and practical application to thereby enable a person skilled in the art to best utilize the invention and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.

What is claimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent is set forth in the appended claims and includes equivalents of the elements recited therein: 

What is claimed is:
 1. A three-dimensionally formed armoring part for a vehicle, comprising: a steel plate made of at least partially hot formed and press hardened armor steel and having a hardness of 380 to 760 Vickers (HV); and a coat applied on at least one side of the steel plate and made of a metal material which is softer than a metal material of the armor steel, said coat being a thermally applied layer and having a hardness of 10 to 230 Vickers (HV).
 2. The armoring part of claim 1, wherein the coat is joined to the steel plate by a form fit and/or force fit.
 3. The armoring part of claim 1, wherein the coat is made of aluminum or an aluminum alloy.
 4. The armoring part of claim 3, wherein the aluminum alloy is Al99.5.
 5. The armoring part of claim 1, wherein the coat is made of zinc or a zinc alloy.
 6. The armoring part of claim 1, wherein the steel plate has a thickness of 5.0 mm to 10.0 mm.
 7. The armoring part of claim 1, wherein the steel plate has a thickness of 7.0 mm to 9.5 mm.
 8. The armoring part of claim 1, wherein the steel plate has a thickness of 7.3 mm to 8.4 mm.
 9. The armoring part of claim 1, wherein the coat has a thickness of 0.01 mm to 0.4 mm.
 10. The armoring part of claim 1, wherein the coat has a thickness of 0.025 mm to 0.25 mm.
 11. The armoring part of claim 1, wherein the coat has a thickness of 0.05 mm to 0.2 mm.
 12. The armoring part of claim 1, further comprising a cathodic coat of dipping varnish.
 13. The armoring part of claim 1, wherein the armor steel is made of a steel alloy which contains at least the following alloying components, expressed in weight-%: Carbon (C) 0.2-0.5 Manganese (Mn) 0.3-2.5 Nickel (Ni) 0.5-3.0,

and further alloy components, remainder iron (Fe) and impurities resulting from smelting.
 14. The armoring part for a vehicle of claim 13, wherein the further alloy components include, expressed in weight-%: Silicon (Si)  0.1-0.3 Phosphor (P) <0.05 Sulphur (S) <0.02 Aluminum (Al) <0.08 Copper (Cu) <0.12 Molybdenum (Mo)  0.1-1.0 Boron (B) 0.001-0.01 Nitrogen (N) <0.05 Chromium (Cr)  0.1-1.0 Titanium (Ti) <0.1 Cobalt (Co) <2.0 Niobium (Nb) <0.08.


15. The armoring part for a vehicle of claim 1, wherein the steel plate has a hardness of 475 to 665 Vickers (HV).
 16. The armoring part for a vehicle of claim 1, wherein the steel plate has a hardness of 520 to 620 Vickers (HV).
 17. The armoring part for a vehicle of claim 1, wherein the coat has a hardness of 15 to 115 Vickers (HV).
 18. The armoring part for a vehicle of claim 1, wherein the coat has a hardness of 20 to 100 Vickers (HV). 